Apparatus for producing margined photographs



L. G. SIMJIAN March 3, 1931.

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING MARGINED, PHOTOGRAPHS Filed July l6 1928 Patented Mar. 3, 1931 UNITED STATES LUTHER G. SIMJ'IAN, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING MARGINED PHOTOGRAPHS Application filed July 16,

use in automatic and semi-automatic photographic niac s, though not so limited.

llereto'f e been the general practice to produce separated tinted margins or herders upon photographs by the Well-known double ri citing method, which involves positioning mask over the border or margin of the positive paper, in addition to positioning the image-hearing negative over the tral portion of the positive paper. The carrying out of this process been diificult and time-consuming", largely owing to the that the must be accurately registered with that portion of the paper designed to receive the from the negative.

Heretofore also When it has been desired to produce a White border ormargin, rather than a tinted one, a separate and distinct has been applied to the negative before posh tioning the same over a sheet of positive paper and prior to the printing of the latter. Here also the orololein of accurate registration is troublesome one It is obvious that either one of the two standard methods obtaining margins are unsuited a practical sense, for use in automatic and set l-au'toinatic photographic machines, ovvin o the need for mechanically positioning a in Furthermore in the so-called direct-positive method, it has not heretofore been practicable to prod ce photographic prints having white or tinted borders or margins. this direct-positive method the image is re corded by the camera in negative form directv upon extra-rapid special sensitized paper which latter, subsequent to exposure, is cheniically treated to reverse the negative-image and transform it into a positive-image. The a difficulty of obtaining White or tinted borders upon direct-positive paper will be best under- 1928. Serial No. 893,177.

stood by drawing attention to the fact that when the margins of such papers are shielded from light as would be the case when a mask is used, the paper would remain photo-chemically unafi'ected Where so masked or covered, and. upon losing subjected to reversing chemicals the resultant margins or borders would he dark rather than light With my improved apparatus, l ahled, in the field of standard photography, to produce a negative which Will in turn pro duce a positive print having a light or soalled '3 or graded horder Without A i or expense of resor' O Also, in the case or p aratus l am enabled to produce appear.

field of d1 ositive photography 1 are enahled also to produce prints having either uniform White or tinted borders.

in the accompanying drawings:

Fig l is a view in "front elevation one form vvhicl constructed i" accordance any invention "for producing niargineo'z photographs may assume;

Fig. 2 is a hrolren central sectional view Fig, 3 is a detaciie l mask; an

Fig, t is a vertical sectional view illustrating my invention as applied to a photo-en larging apparatus.

ln the embodiment of my invention herein chosen for illustration, I employ a box-like housing Within which is located a supplyreel ll upon which is Wound a strip oi undeveloped photo-sensitive material 12. The said strip 12 passes upward over an idlerroil l3 and forward through an aperture i lin the trout plate 15 of the housing i and downward over an idler-roller l6 and inward through aperturel? in the said front-plate l5 and between the adjacent faces of complementary "feed-rollers l8 and 19 and is finally Wound upon a receiving-reel 20 which is frictionallv driven by means of a belt 21 and pulleys 22 and 23 from the drive-shaft 2c of the teed-roller 19. "it is obvious that by turning the shaft- 24 strip 12 will be drawn downperspective vievv of the Ward and rolled up upon the receiving-reel 20 aforesaid. I

. Positioned substantially centrally w th respect to that portion of the photo-sensitive strip 22 lying'between the idler-rollers 13 and 16' which I shall for convenience of description designate A, I locate a camera of usual construction and requiring no detailed description other than to say that its shuttermechanism (not shown) is operated by an electro-magnet 26.

Positioned around the said camera 25 I place a hollow chambered shield which comprises an inner rectangular 'wall 27 and a complementary outer rectangular wall 28, both of which extend in planes substantially perpendicular to that portion A- of the photo-sensitive strip 12 aforesaid, though they may obviously slope inward or outward if desired so long as the inner wall discharges the function of preventing light for produc ng the mar gins from spreading laterally inward upon the central image-receiving area of the photosensitive material. In a broad sense, the inner wall 27 may be properly characterized as ring-like in so far as it laterally encompasses the central image-receiving area of the photo-sensitive material. The said hollow shield also comprises an end-wall 29 connecting the inner and outer walls 27 and '28 as shown, and in which are mounted at equidlstant points four (more or less) inwardly-projecting electric bulbs 30 electrically connected in multiple with each other and with the electro-magnet 26 and controlled together with the latterby a switch 31 governing the flow of current from the storage-battery 32 or other suitable source of electrical energy. As thus located, the bulbs 30 are enclosed within the chambered shield aforesaid.

Positioned between the vertical reach A of the photo-sensitive strip 12 on one hand, and

the camera 25 and the shield on theot-herhand, I locate a translucent screen or mask33 having a central rectangular opening 34 and also having that portion of its surface surrounding the outer wall of the shield provided with an opaque coating 35 designed to prevent extraneous rays of light from entering the mask 10 and so damaging the strip 12.

It will be obvious from the drawings that the central or image-receiving section of the vertical reach A of the photo-sensitive strip will be shielded by the wall 24 from light emanating from the bulbs 30 within the said shield. It will also be seen that the light passing through the camera will be prevented from encroaching upon the marginal area surrounding the said central portion also b the said wall 27; the outer wall 28 of the shield acting to prevent extraneous rays from affecting the said marginal area.

In the use of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive when the switch 31 is closed the shutter of the camera will be operated by the magnet26 so as to record upon the central portion of the vertical reach A of the strip 12 the image, whatever its character, itioned in front of the said camera. Sim taneously (although this is not necessary) the lamps 30 will be lighted and their rays will shine through that portion of the mask 33 included between the walls'27 and 28 of the shield with the efiect of photo-chemicall acting upon that area of the strip 12 lying directly back of the shield so that when the said strip is developed it will be provided with a light margin or border surrounding the photograph proper.

If it is desired to produce a so-called tinted or graded margin around the photograph, it

is obvious without illustration that the surface of the mask 33 included between the walls 27 and 28 of the shield maybe provided with a finely-stipple'd or other semi-transparent surface.

In Fig. 4 of the drawings I have shown a photo-enlarging apparatus comprising the usual enlarging camera 36 provided at the rear of its bellows with a negative holder 37 and with a light-chamber 38 in which is end of a standard 42 upstanding from a baseplate 43 upon the upper face of which ispositioned a section 44 of photo-sensitive material. Resting upon the top of the photosensitive material 44 is a mask 45 provided with a semi-trans aren-t surface 46 having a central opening 4 arranged axially in line with the camera 36 and with the central image-receiving area of the section 44 of photo-sensitive material.

Like the apparatus previously described, the marginal area of the photo-sensitive material is shielded from light passing through the camera by a hollow chambered shield comprising an inner wall 48 and an outer wall 49 connected by an end wall 50 in which is mounted, so as to be enclosed within the said mask, a plurality of incandescent bulbs 51 connected in multiple with each other and with the electro-magnet 40, so as to be energized simultaneously with the latter when a switch 52 is operated to close a circuit'from a storage-battery 53.

When the lights 51 are turned on, their rays will pass through the semi-transparent area y 46 of the mask 45, with the efiect of imparting to the marginal area of the sensitized material 44 a so-called tinted or graded efli'ect.

I claim 1. An apparatus of the class described comprising a holder for photo-sensitive sheetmaterial; a camera arranged 'to cause the light passing therethrough to impinge upon the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material; illuminating means arranged to cast artificial light upon the margins of the said photo-sensitive material; and a ring-like light-shield having a wall substantially corresponding in size to and laterally encompassing the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material and extending substantially perpendicular with respect thereto in position to prevent the light emanating from the said illuminating means from spreading laterally inward in any direction upon the central image-receiving area of the photo-sensitive material.

2. An apparatus of the class described comprising a holder for photo-sensitive sheetmaterial; a camera arranged to cause the light passing therethrough to impinge upon the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material; illuminatin means arranged to cast artificial light upon te margins of the said photo-sensitive material;

- means constructed and arranged to cause the said camera and the said illuminating means to function substantially simultaneously; and a ring-like light-shield having a wall substantially corresponding in size to and laterally encompassing the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material and extending substantially perpendicular with respect thereto in position to prevent the light emanating from the said illuminating means from spreading laterally inward in'any direction upon the central image-receiving area of the photo-sensitive material.

3. An apparatus of the class described com prising a holder 'for photo-sensitive sheetmaterial; an "electrically-operable camera arranged to cause the light passing therethrough to impinge upon the central imagereceiving area of the said photo-sensitive .material; electric illuminating means arranged to cast light upon the margins of the said photo-sensitive material; a switch interposed in a circuit controlling the action of both the said camera and the said electric illuminating. means; whereby the two last mentioned elements may be caused to act substantially simultaneously; and a ring-like light-shield having a wall substantially corresponding in size to and laterally enco=m-= passing the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material and extend ing substantially perpendicular withvrespect thereto in position to prevent the light emanating from the said illuminating means from spreading laterally inward in any direction upon the central image-receiving area of the photo-sensitive material.

An apparatus of the class described com- -prising a holder "for photo-sensitive sheetmaterial; a camera arranged to cause the light passing therethrough to impinge upon 7 the central area of the said photo-sensitive material; illuminating means arranged to cast artificial light upon the margins of the said photo-sensitive material; atranslucent screen interposed between the said illuminating means and the marginal area of the said photo-sensitive material; and a ring-like light-shield having a wall substantially corresponding in size to and laterally encompassing the central image-receiving area of the said photo-sensitive material and extending substantially perpendicular with respect thereto in position-to prevent the light emanating from the said illuminating means from spreading laterally inward in any direction upon the central image-receiving area of the photo-sensitive material.

5. An apparatus of the class described comprising a holder for photo-sensitive sheetmaterial; a camera arranged to cause the light passing therethrough to impinge upon the central area of the said photo-sensitive material; illuminating means arranged to cast artificial light upon the margins of the said photo-sensitive material; and a chambered shield adapted to enclose the said illuminating means and comprising complementary rectangular inner and outer walls arranged substantially perpendicular to the photo-sensitive material, the said inner wall substantially corresponding in size to and laterally encompassing the central imagereceiving area of the said photo-sensitive specification.

LUTHER G. SIMJ IAN. 

